Deception (A Dragons Race to the Edge Fanfic)

Chapter 20

"Amethyst?" You called out as loudly as you dared. It was mid-afternoon, and you didn't want the hunters to find out that you didn't know where Amethyst was. It was only natural that the young Changewing was mischievous and inquisitive, but her little adventures on Dragon Hunter Island always made you worry until you eventually found her. You couldn't stop a dragon from following its instincts to explore, but you sincerely hoped she hadn't eaten all the fish or aggravated any of the hunters, as you figured that wouldn't do your reputation any favors. You had been searching for her for about half an hour. You usually found her in the forest, as that was closest to the Changewing's natural habitat. However, after calling through the trees for twenty minutes, you concluded that she must have decided to expand her explorations to another part of the island. You began heading inland, among the many tents of the Dragon Hunters.

 You heard a faint rustling and scratching from inside one of the tents, and crept forward to investigate further. As you approached the tent, the noises became louder. Checking that no one was behind you, you pushed the flap open slightly to peer inside. Sure enough, you could see Amethyst rummaging through whatever it was that she had found of interest in there. Then it dawned on you: this wasn't just any tent - it was Viggo's tent. The huge dragon skull at the far end, along with the Maces and Talons game board, was unmistakable. Your core tightened as you realized that Viggo could return at any moment.

"Amethyst!" you hissed urgently. But, whatever she had found was clearly far too distracting for her to leave straight away. Taking another glance behind, and a worried gulp, you stepped into the tent, and Amethyst perked her head up to look at you.

"I've been looking for you everywhere!" Amethyst gave an amused squawk, and looked up at you with innocent eyes. She was only a couple of months old, after all, and she was following her instincts. You smiled gently, beckoning her to follow you out of the tent.

"Come on, we should get out of here before Viggo notices." Amethyst began following you to the entrance of the tent, when you realized what a mess she had made. There were papers scattered on the floor, as well as Maces and Talons pieces. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out a dragon had been in here, and Viggo seemed to be one for noticing things.

"You keep guard." you said to Amethyst sternly, giving a small hand gesture you'd taught her. It was amazing how quickly she had picked up the things you taught her. She was an incredibly intelligent dragon, which was usually an advantage, but her curious nature seemed to sometimes get the better of her; hence your current dilemma. She gave a quick snort of approval, and poked her head out of the tent, scanning the surrounding area for hunters.

 As quickly as you could, you began gathering the Maces and Talons pieces, and placed them on the game board in a formation you deemed Viggo could believe to be of his own creation. Next, you hurriedly picked up the papers, and began stacking them on a table to the side of the room. The main desk already seemed pretty full of documents and, judging by the position of the papers of the floor, it looked like Amethyst had swept them with her tail onto the floor. As you picked up some of the documents, you couldn't help but briefly skim the information that they contained. Most were about trading agreements and profits. As you picked up the final document, your eyes skimmed over the name at the bottom. It read Krogan. The name didn't mean much to you, as you had never heard it before. You assumed it was probably some kind of business-related document from a trading partner. Nonetheless, you couldn't resist reading further into the letter. However, just as you were about to, you felt Amethyst knock you from behind, knocking the letter out of your hand, back onto the floor. She pushed you under the desk to the side of the tent, shielding you with her wings. Confused, you sat up, seconds later realizing the reason for her intervention. You heard footsteps approaching the tent! Concealing you within her wings, Amethyst camouflaged herself under the desk.

 Moments later, Viggo entered the tent. Peering through a slight gap between Amethyst's wings, you held your breath under the table as Viggo stepped into the tent. You saw him peer at the Maces and Talons game board, examining the positions of the pieces. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, but you wished he would stop studying it so intensely. As he stepped further into the tent, he noticed the letter you had dropped on the floor, which was directly in line with where you and Amethyst hid under the desk. As he bent down to pick it up, you bit your lip, begging him not to look in your direction. To your relief he didn't, but you saw his eyes narrow as he pondered how the letter came to be there. You felt the wood above your head thud slightly as he placed it decidedly on the desk.

 For the next few minutes, you watched him wander the tent, pacing back and forth in front of the desk, his hands clasped tightly behind his back, and an expression of strife upon his face. You had never seen him like this before, as he stepped quickly from one side of the room to the other. He seemed almost...agitated. You found yourself wondering what could have provoked such behavior from him of all people. You also found yourself wanting to offer him consolation in some way. As strange as it seemed to you, seeing him tormented like this almost hurt. Eventually, he came to sit on a stool beside the Maces and Talons game board, almost breathless from whatever troubling thoughts he had endured. Whatever it was on his mind, this wasn't something immediate. This was something that had been building up, slowly chipping away at his mind for the last few weeks - you could tell.

This made you realize that the assured character he displayed in public didn't necessarily mirror his constant state of mind. When you had been with the Dragon Riders, he had been another villain you had to overcome. But, over the last few weeks, you had come to realize that he was a person, with doubts and troubles...just like you.

Regaining his composure a little, he picked up a Maces and Talons gamepiece, and looked at it contemplatively.

"The accomplice." he muttered to himself. "Who would have thought I would have to suppress such emotions as these..." his voice trailed off, as he revolved the game piece between his fingers, allowing it to catch the light of the lantern. He seemed lost in thought for a moment, and so did you. What emotions? Deep down, you found yourself asking the same question as him. You could hardly deny your own emotions now, but that didn't mean that you were going to voice them while you retained an ounce of sanity.

Suddenly, you heard growls and blasts coming from outside. A new shipment of dragons perhaps? Broken from his thoughts, Viggo abruptly got up from the stool, once again returning to the cool and collected composure you were accustomed to. For a second, you thought the moment of vulnerability you had witnessed had been merely a dream, but it couldn't be. You waited for a few moments after he had left the tent. You and Amethyst swiftly slipped out of the tent, back towards the forest.

"Phew, that was close!" you breathed. Amethyst gave a playful squawk of satisfaction at what you had got away with. You smiled at her warmly. Walking back, however, you couldn't help your mind drifting back to what you had witnessed. Your heart ached at the thought of Viggo and, from what you could tell, he did not seem to be as insensitive as you might have previously imagined.

A/N: Sorry this chapter is a bit late! This chapter wasn't originally going to feature in the story, but I suddenly got the idea and decided to add it. Let me know if you like it! Anyway, that's all for now!